Veteran NBA center Jason Collins cites many factors in his decision to publicly come out as gay, including a conversation with his old college roommate, U.S. Rep. Joe Kennedy III.

“I realized I needed to go public when Joe Kennedy, my old roommate at Stanford and now a Massachusetts congressman, told me he had just marched in Boston’s 2012 Gay Pride Parade,” Collins wrote in a first-person article published Monday on the Sports Illustrated website.

Collins, 34, who has played for a half-dozen NBA teams and is currently a free agent, described that event as a powerful moment.

“I’m seldom jealous of others, but hearing what Joe had done filled me with envy,” he wrote in the Sports Illustrated article. “I was proud of him for participating but angry that as a closeted gay man I couldn’t even cheer my straight friend on as a spectator. If I’d been questioned, I would have concocted half truths. What a shame to have to lie at a celebration of pride. I want to do the right thing and not hide anymore. I want to march for tolerance, acceptance and understanding. I want to take a stand and say, ‘Me, too.’”

Kennedy, a freshman lawmaker from one of the nation’s most prominent political families, said he was proud of his former college roommate.

“For as long as I’ve known Jason Collins he has been defined by three things: his passion for the sport he loves, his unwavering integrity, and the biggest heart you will ever find,” Kennedy said in a statement. “Without question or hesitation, he gives everything he’s got to those of us lucky enough to be in his life. I’m proud to stand with him today and proud to call him a friend.”

Attempts to reach Kennedy before deadline were unsuccessful.

Collins, who played this season for the Boston Celtics and the Washington Wizards, described life as a closeted gay athlete as enduring years of misery and going to great lengths to live a lie.

“I didn’t set out to be the first openly gay athlete playing in a major American team sport. But since I am, I’m happy to start the conversation. I wish I wasn’t the kid in the classroom raising his hand and saying, ‘I’m different,’” Collins wrote. “If I had my way, someone else would have already done this. Nobody has, which is why I’m raising my hand.”

His announcement Monday drew statements of support from a variety of figures, including President Barack Obama, former President Bill Clinton, Los Angeles Lakers star Kobe Bryant and Celtics coach Doc Rivers.

Collins wrote that revealed his sexual orientation to Kennedy a few weeks ago and plans to participate in this year’s Boston Gay Pride Parade..

Page 2 of 2 -
“He asked me to join him in 2013,” he wrote in the Sports Illustrated article. “We’ll be marching on June 8.”